| Course | CIS 434 Internet Marketing |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 2 |
| Paper type | Market opportunity analysis |
| Length | About 1,023 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for CIS 434 Module 2
The Anglers Who Live Somewhere Else: Framing an Online Market Opportunity for a Montana Fly Shop
Student Name
Business Administration Program, Aspen University
CIS 434: Internet Marketing
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
The Anglers Who Live Somewhere Else: Framing an Online Market Opportunity for a Montana Fly Shop
Module 1 concluded that Rattlesnake Creek Fly Shop should use the internet to carry its local expertise to anglers beyond Missoula. Before choosing a strategy, the shop needs to know which of those anglers have needs that no one serves well, how many there are and what they are worth. This paper frames that opportunity. None of the shop, its customers or its numbers are real, and the license counts are illustrative.
Following the Angler's Activity
The analysis starts from what an angler does, not what the shop sells. A visiting angler decides to fish Montana, chooses a river and a time of year, finds a guide or decides to fish alone, buys a license, gathers the right gear and flies, travels, fishes, and afterward shares photographs and stories. At each step there can be frustration. Interviews with eighteen past guided clients, conducted by phone, found the same three repeatedly: not knowing which river or week would fish best, arriving with the wrong flies and losing touch with the guide once the trip was over.
Segments and Their Needs
| Segment | Approximate size | Unmet or poorly met need | Who serves them now |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missoula locals | 4,000 active anglers | Fresh river conditions; tying supplies | The shop, two competitors, big-box stores |
| Regional anglers within a day's drive | 25,000 | Knowing when a trip is worth the drive | Forums, friends, the shop's phone line |
| Anglers who travel to fish western Montana | 70,000 a year | Planning help, the right flies before arriving, guide continuity | Lodges, booking sites, scattered outfitters |
| Anglers who will never visit | Large but diffuse | Regional fly patterns tied by people who fish them | National retailers with generic patterns |
What Online Selection Is Worth
Brynjolfsson et al. (2003) estimated the value consumers gained from the far larger range of titles sold by online booksellers. A large share of online book sales came from titles that typical physical bookstores did not stock, and the value consumers gained from that added variety was roughly seven to ten times the value of the lower prices online. The lesson for a small retailer is that selection a customer cannot find nearby can be worth more than a discount.
Rattlesnake Creek's guides tie or source about 400 patterns suited to particular western Montana rivers and seasons, such as small olive emergers for October on the Bitterroot. Most fly shops elsewhere stock a few dozen generic patterns. For an angler preparing for a specific week on a specific river, the shop's selection is worth more than any price advantage a national retailer offers.
Evidence From Online Conversation
Godes and Mayzlin (2004) studied online conversations about new television shows across many separate online communities. The number of posts was a weaker guide to a show's later ratings than how widely the conversation was spread across different communities, because discussion confined to one group reached people who already knew about the show. The study showed that online conversation could serve as inexpensive market data when it was measured carefully.
The shop applied the idea by reviewing a year of posts in six angling forums and two social media groups. Rattlesnake Creek's name appeared in 340 posts, but 290 of them were in a single Montana forum; mentions elsewhere were rare. Posts asking for western Montana trip advice, by contrast, appeared in all eight communities, about 1,100 times in the year, often with complaints about flies bought elsewhere that did not work. The need is widespread, while the shop's reputation is confined to one place, a gap the strategy must close.
What a Customer Is Worth
Gupta et al. (2004) proposed valuing a company's customers as the sum of the margins each is expected to generate over time, allowing for the chance that they leave and discounting future margins to today. Using data from five firms, they showed that customer value tracked market value closely for several of them, and that a one percentage point improvement in retention increased customer value far more than an equal improvement in margin or acquisition cost.
For the shop, a traveling angler who books a guided trip spends about $750 on the trip and $150 on flies and gear, with combined margins of about $380. If 60% of clients return in each later year, and each returning client books again and adds $100 of online fly sales at a $45 margin, the customer's value over five years, discounted at 10%, is about $845. Raising the share who return from 60% to 70% would lift that value by nearly a fifth, to about $1,000.
Sizing the Opportunity
If Rattlesnake Creek reached 2% of the 70,000 traveling anglers each year, about 1,400 people, and a third of them booked a trip while the rest bought fly kits averaging $120, sales would be about $1.1 million a year, roughly half from guiding. Even reaching 1% would add more than half a million dollars. Guide capacity limits trips to about 900 a year, so the fly kit side matters as much as the trips. Kits also travel well: a box of flies costs a few dollars to mail, needs no fitting and rarely comes back.
Can the Shop Win?
Lodges and outfitters with large budgets also court traveling anglers, and booking sites list dozens of guides. The shop cannot outspend them. It can offer what they rarely do: flies tied for the exact river and week, a guide who answers questions before the trip, and contact afterward. National retailers sell flies more cheaply but generically. The shop's advantage is specific knowledge, which suits the needs found in the interviews.
Conclusion
The strongest opportunity lies with anglers who travel to fish western Montana and who want help planning, the right flies before they arrive and a continuing connection with a guide. Brynjolfsson, Hu and Smith show why specialized selection can outweigh price, Godes and Mayzlin show that the need is discussed widely while the shop is not, and Gupta, Lehmann and Stuart turn each traveling customer into a value of about $845. Module 3 builds a strategy around that segment.
References
Brynjolfsson, E., Hu, Y., & Smith, M. D. (2003). Consumer surplus in the digital economy: Estimating the value of increased product variety at online booksellers. Management Science, 49(11), 1580-1596. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.49.11.1580.20580
Godes, D., & Mayzlin, D. (2004). Using online conversations to study word-of-mouth communication. Marketing Science, 23(4), 545-560. https://doi.org/10.1287/mksc.1040.0071
Gupta, S., Lehmann, D. R., & Stuart, J. A. (2004). Valuing customers. Journal of Marketing Research, 41(1), 7-18. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.41.1.7.25084
CIS 434 Module 2 instructions, in plain terms
Framing the market opportunity is the second module of CIS 434, and the paper usually asks students to identify unmet customer needs, the segments that hold them and whether the opportunity is worth pursuing. Your Aspen classroom's Module 2 prompt comes first; the shop and its numbers are invented. Describe the customer activity in which needs arise. Identify segments and their unmet or poorly met needs. Use evidence, including online data, to show the needs are real. Estimate the size and value of the opportunity. Judge honestly whether the company can beat its rivals for it, citing each source in APA 7 style.
Inside the CIS 434 Module 2 example
The analysis follows an angler from deciding to fish Montana to tying on the last fly of the trip and finds four segments: Missoula locals, regional anglers within a day's drive, anglers who travel to fish western Montana and anglers who will never visit but want regional flies. Brynjolfsson, Hu and Smith (Management Science) explain why selection matters online; Godes and Mayzlin (Marketing Science) justify counting how widely the shop is discussed across forums; Gupta, Lehmann and Stuart (Journal of Marketing Research) supply the customer value method. About 70,000 nonresident anglers buy Montana fishing licenses for western rivers each year in this composite, and a guided client is worth about $845 over five years. Traveling anglers could be worth roughly $1.1 million in yearly sales to the shop, and the last section rates the shop's ability to win it against outfitters, national retailers and guide booking sites.
CIS 434 Module 2 rubric: what earns full marks
An opportunity analysis is graded on whether the needs are specific and supported and whether the opportunity is sized with reasoning a reader can check. This example works from the customer's activity, so the needs emerge from what anglers actually do rather than from the shop's product list. Each segment has named unmet needs, and the online conversation evidence uses Godes and Mayzlin's insight to count spread across communities, not just volume. The customer value calculation follows Gupta, Lehmann and Stuart, which turns the opportunity into money. The competitor assessment is honest about where the shop cannot win. Choosing one segment at the end shows that framing leads to focus.
Common CIS 434 Module 2 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Opportunity papers often describe a market in general terms, such as "the fishing industry is large," without identifying who has an unmet need. Start with the customer's activity and look for the points of frustration. Another weakness is sizing the market with total industry sales instead of the share a small firm could realistically reach; build the estimate from customers and what each is worth. Show your evidence that the needs exist, including online conversation, reviews or search interest. Be honest about competitors. Finally, end by choosing where to focus, because framing that leaves every segment open has not done its job.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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CIS 434 Module 2 questions, answered
What does CIS 434 Module 2 usually ask for?
Aspen's CIS 434 covers framing the market opportunity in this module, so identifying segments, their unmet needs and the size of the opportunity is typical. Check your Module 2 prompt.
What is a market opportunity analysis?
A study of who has unmet or poorly met needs, how many of them there are, what they are worth and whether the firm can serve them better than rivals.
How can online conversations show demand?
Godes and Mayzlin found that how widely a product is discussed across different online communities predicted its later ratings better than the number of posts.
Where can I find a free CIS 434 Module 2 sample paper?
This page carries one in full, free of charge: a market opportunity analysis for an invented Montana fly shop with a segment needs table and a sizing.
How do I value a customer?
Following Gupta, Lehmann and Stuart, add the margins a customer is expected to produce over time, adjusted for the chance of retaining them and discounted to today.